“I’ve got five this year, but that’s still not enough. I should be hitting 10 every season”- Declan Rice challenges himself

Michail Antonio, Said Benrahma and Declan Rice of West Ham United celebrate victory
Michail Antonio, Said Benrahma and Declan Rice of West Ham United celebrate victory

The 23-year-old West Ham United midfielder wants to break his five goals and aim for 10 every season. Despite having five goals in all competitions throughout 2021-22, He wants to be one of the best playmakers. 

Declan Rice is part of the England team that reached the Euro 2020 final, helped them with a remarkable Premier League campaign, while also giving his best goals at West Ham to the semi-finals of the Europa League.

In an interview with Goal, Rice said, “With my ability, I want to start scoring more goals,”

“I’ve got five this year, but that’s still not enough. I should be hitting 10 every season.

“I feel like that’s a goal for me that I should be able to hit, and let’s see if I can do it.

“There’s always a part of my game that I’m trying to improve. My defensive abilities, that I’m really good at, I can still get better. You could always come up against a top player that exposes that, and then you’ve got to be able to go again and improve.” 

“I’ve done it with England, but haven’t done it at club level, so I can take that into the next stage of my career. 

“I’ve shown I can play and now I can use the experience from those games.”

Yaya Toure is Rice’s football idol. The ex-Manchester City midfielder is an inspiration for Rice. Toure is one of the best-ever midfielders who has every played in Premier League. Rice wanted to meet him one day to seek advice. 

Rice added, “I saw his stats earlier today from 2013-14. It was like 20 goals and nine assists.

“He’s one of my favourite midfielders ever and looks like a top guy. It’d be good to meet him one day to get some advice.

“I’ve played 220 career games, which at 23 is crazy, but I want to keep learning fast and improving.”